Thousands of families shut out from justice since Government cuts

3 October 2014

The Bar Council has warned that families across England &
Wales have felt the full brunt of the Government's civil legal aid
cuts, with a drop of 15,000 per quarter, equivalent to
60,000 a year, in the number of people receiving legal aid for
family cases which go to court, and 40,000 per quarter,
equivalent to 160,000 a year, in the number of people
receiving advice on their family law problems.

The Ministry of Justice's own statistics for legal aid for Q2
2014 reveal that since cuts to civil legal aid came into effect in
April 2013 under the Government's Legal Aid, Sentencing and
Punishment of Offenders Act the number of people receiving legal
representation on legal aid plummeted from 40,090 in
January-March 2013 to 23,149 in April-June 2014, with the bulk of
the cuts hitting family law cases.

Nicholas Lavender QC, Chairman of the Bar,
said:

"The quarterly legal aid statistics are a welcome contribution
to a more transparent approach to the workings of legal aid.
However, they also demonstrate the full impact of the cuts to
civil legal aid, which is having a profound impact on the
lives of many vulnerable people across England & Wales. We
warned the Ministry of Justice that the cuts would mean that
thousands of families would be denied access to justice and our
prediction, sadly for those affected, has come true.

"The latest quarterly figures show that families facing serious
issues, such as disputes concerning children, are effectively
being shut out of the justice system. The human
consequences of cutting a huge part of family law out of legal aid
are clearly being seen."

Earlier this month, the Bar Council report LASPO: One Year On, uncovered the impact the
changes were already having on access to justice. The official
legal aid statistics echo some of those findings, says the Bar
Council.

"Overcutting" criminal justice

The latest legal aid statistics also show that there has already
been a massive reduction in expenditure as a result of the combined
effect of earlier cuts and the fall in crime. As a result,
the further cuts proposed last year to the fees paid to Crown Court
advocates can clearly be seen to be unnecessary, as the Bar Council
argued at the time.

Nicholas Lavender QC said: "Crime has fallen and so have
criminal cases going to Court. This means that the cost of
legal aid has fallen. Crown Court advocacy fees have already
been cut by an average of 21% since 2007 (or 37% in real
terms). There is no need, and no scope, for any further
cuts."

Further commentary from the Bar Council on the legal aid
statistics can be found
here.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

1. Further information is available from the Bar Council Press
Office on 020 7222 2525 and Press@BarCouncil.org.uk.

2. The Bar
Council represents barristers in England and Wales. It
promotes:

The Bar's high quality specialist advocacy and advisory
services

Fair access to justice for all

The highest standards of ethics, equality and diversity across
the profession, and

The development of business opportunities for barristers at home
and abroad.

The General Council of the Bar is the Approved Regulator of the
Bar of England and Wales. It discharges its regulatory functions
through the independent Bar Standards
Board. ﻿